Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2582: Atonement for Sins 45.0
"This is really a rare thing!" Xue Ruitian raised his eyebrows, "I remember that during that period, families in the capital, big and small, attached great importance to the safety of their children. After all, many kidnappers of children were caught, and everyone was a little scared. Little boys are not a big deal, but families with little girls are even more concerned, right?" He looked at Bai Meng, "At that time, Grandpa Bai was still in charge of the imperial guards, so he must have been very busy."

"Yes, and whether it's the Imperial Guards, the Patrol Battalion, or the Jingzhao Prefecture, they send out a large number of people every day to go door to door to spread the word, asking adults at home to keep an eye on their children. If they must go out, they must be accompanied by someone. Even if there are no guards at home, they are told that when children go out, they must either travel with a companion or be accompanied by an adult. It is best not to leave children alone."

"That's right!" Xue Ruitian took a sip of hot soup, followed up on Bai Meng's words, and continued, "This is only during the day. At night, people are basically not allowed to go out. Originally, there was no curfew in the first month of the year, but that time, there was a curfew again. Anyone who violated it, no matter what the situation, would be arrested and taken to the Jingzhao government office and beaten with a few boards." He looked at Song Yaojia and said unhappily, "Although the Zeng family is a noble family, they should have hired guards or something. The young lady of the family should not go out alone. How could she..."

"He has guards at home, and Miss Zeng doesn't go out alone, that is."

"That's right?" Merlin looked at Song Yaojia curiously, "Could it be that the guards are betraying us?"

"Of course not, they have to have the ability to do it." Yingbao rolled his eyes, "Those from the Yushi family may look big and strong, but they can't carry anything on their shoulders or lift anything with their hands. If they really fight, they can't beat even the thugs on the street." He looked at the others and found that everyone had a look of doubt on their faces. He said, "This is the fact." He looked at Song Yaojia, "Otherwise, it wouldn't be our prince's turn to step forward."

"That's right, their guards are really..." Song Yaojia patted himself, "They can't even beat me."

"Then Mr. Zeng's money was wasted." Xue Ruitian looked at the table and found that no one had touched the basket of steamed dumplings in the middle. He asked, "What is this? Aren't you going to eat it?"

"Steamed mutton dumplings." Meilin explained, "Sister Miaomiao likes it, so this is for her." She took a basket from the table next to her and placed it in front of Xue Ruitian, "This is ours, the same as that one."

"If you save it for her, you should keep it warm in the pot, right? Won't it get cold?"

"When she eats it, just heat it up in the pot. If it's kept warm in the pot, the dough won't taste good."

"Well, that's true!"

Xue Ruitian nodded, opened the lid of the steamer, took one out, took a small bite, and his eyes lit up.

"Delicious?" Merlin was also very curious when he saw him like this. He went over to take one and put it in his mouth. "Eh?"

"It's delicious, right?" Xue Ruitian looked at her. "Doesn't this taste special? It's different from what we had before, right?"

"I've never eaten such delicious steamed dumplings." Merlin nodded at him repeatedly, turned to look at Shen Haolin and Shen Cha, and said, "It's very delicious. Duke and Boss, try one. I highly recommend it."

"Really?" Seeing that both of them liked this, Shen Cha stood up and walked to Xue Ruitian's side, put a few on her small plate, turned around and placed it in front of Shen Haolin, "Try it."

"Hmm," Merlin ate another one, tasted it, and said, "It doesn't seem to be pure mutton. It should also have fresh fish or shrimp meat, right?"

"Yes!" Shen Cha ate one and liked it very much. She said, "Everyone should try it. It is indeed completely different from the steamed dumplings we used to have."

"Really?" Song Yaojia stood up and snatched the remaining half basket from Xue Ruitian, saying, "I'll try it too. If it tastes good, I'll ask Old Mo for a recipe and give it to the chef in the mansion so that my uncle and father can have a taste too."

Hearing him say this, Xue Ruitian had no choice but to look at Merlin, asking if he could eat Jin Miaomiao's portion and ask Mr. Mo to make it for her later.

Merlin thought about it, nodded at him, and said, "It shouldn't be just this. I guess there are more in the kitchen."

"It's fresher when it's cooked and eaten right away!" Xue Ruitian opened another cage with satisfaction and invited Yingbao, Yingshun and Shaobai to eat together. "Go on, tell us what happened back then and who was that little hooligans who molested Miss Zeng."

"That was the last temple fair in the first month of the year. The whole West Street was very lively. Many children were willing to run to West Street at this time." Yingbao looked at the chicken pot, scooped a spoonful into his bowl, and said, "Originally, the prince didn't want to go out, but our prince's birthday is in a few days. The prince had ordered an exquisite hidden weapon box before, and the agreed date for picking it up came, so he had to go. After all, if you are not very satisfied, there is still time to change it. So, we went to West Street. Before we got to the shop, we saw a bunch of people gathered together to watch the excitement." "You also know me. I don't like to watch ordinary excitement, but I found that the one who was surrounded was the young lady of the Zeng family. At least she saved us. I saw that she was in trouble. I couldn't be indifferent, right?" Song Yaojia sighed, "I pushed through the crowd and squeezed in. I saw that the one who was in trouble was the young lady of the Zeng family, and the one who was causing trouble was not a stranger." He looked at Shen Haolin and Shen Cha, then at Xue Ruitian and Bai Meng, sneered, and said, "Yan Bo's nephew who I have never met."

"Someone from the Yan family?" Xue Ruitian showed a look of disdain on his face, "The nephew who tried every means to get Uncle Yan to join the Shen family army?"

"Yes, that's him." Song Yaojia spread his hands. "His family disliked Yan Bo for being a playboy and didn't like him. It was only after he went to the border and made great achievements that they thought of having such a son. But they never disliked their little grandson for being a playboy. If Yan Bo was only a playboy on the surface, then this one was a scoundrel from head to toe."

"That's right." Bai Meng nodded. "He was sent to Jingzhao Prefecture Jail at least three or four times a month. It's almost become a common occurrence for their family to go to Jingzhao Prefecture to pick him up."

"But if it's him, he should know you, right?" Xue Ruitian looked at Song Yaojia while holding the steamed dumplings. "His family still has the title. Although they are not eligible to attend court, they should have attended larger and more formal palace banquets."

"That's where the problem lies." Yingbao spread his hands helplessly. "He neither knows the prince nor the young lady of the Zeng family. He is so stupid as to introduce himself as the young master of the Yan family. If the young lady of the Zeng family follows him, even if she is not his wife but a concubine, she can still enjoy a good life. Those playboys and hooligans on his side also followed suit, and the people around just watched the fun. No one was willing to intervene. Our prince couldn't stand it, so he stepped forward to stop them, but he was ridiculed by them."

"The young master of the Yan family is very brave." Xue Ruitian sneered, "He is really brave. If I remember correctly, Uncle Yan followed Uncle Shen, Aunt Shen, my father and mother back to Beijing. He was not afraid."

"If you have never suffered a big loss or hit a wall, you are naturally not afraid." Song Yaojia sighed, "Also, if you have never seen much of the world, you are naturally ignorant and fearless."

"What happened next?" Merlin was fascinated and urged Eagle Leopard to speak quickly, "They started a war over a disagreement?"

"More or less. Besides, they were the first to attack. The prince could have been fine alone, but the other side had more people and they had to protect Miss Zeng. Later, he gradually fell into a disadvantage, so..."

"You guys took action, right?" Merlin clicked her tongue twice. "You guys took action, and you can imagine what will happen to the young master of the Yan family and his lackeys." She looked at Song Yaojia, "Miss Zeng is very grateful to you, Your Highness?"

"Yes, but I told her that this was to repay her for saving my life during the Lantern Festival." Song Yaojia sighed helplessly, "Then."

"Then he took us away." Eagle Leopard stood up with a look of disappointment on his face and cleared his throat, "Let me show you how our prince said this back then." He raised his foot and kicked Eagle Falcon, "Come on, cooperate with me."

Ying Falcon smirked, stood up, and said in a pinched voice, "Thank you for your help, young master."

"No need." Eagle Leopard looked at Eagle Falcon expressionlessly with a stern face, and said, "Miss saved my life and my brother's life that night, we don't owe each other anything."

After saying that, he strode forward with the falcon in his arms. When he reached the door of the big tent, he stopped. The two of them turned around and looked at Song Yaojia helplessly, sighing heavily.

"Just..." Shen Cha and Mei Lin looked at each other, both looking at Song Yaojia in shock, "You actually..."

"Hey!" Xue Ruitian and Bai Meng sighed at the same time and said helplessly, "Brother, how will the young lady see you with your performance like this?"

"I," Song Yaojia touched his chin embarrassedly and said, "I later felt that I was indeed a bit too cold, but at that time I really didn't want to flirt with a lady in public, so I had to do this. However, I also explained it to her, and she expressed her understanding."

"Have you explained it to her?" The others exchanged glances. "When? Did you meet again?"

"Yeah!" Song Yaojia smiled proudly, "Or else this is fate. The day after my uncle's birthday, we met again. This time it was in a teahouse, and we booked two connected private rooms."